Not missing the blustery
7-hour lampitaw ride of my first
journey here, I stepped out of the plane—moments after it made a historic first
landing on the island—buoyed by a feeling akin to rekindling a tryst with a
former lover. Calayan Island has that effect on me. It could be because last
time, the place served as a background to my memorable hilltop and beachside
frolics with my then girlfriend.
While this second time was
for a writing assignment witnessing a historic first: the
maiden flight to Calayan Island. I cannot dismiss the fact that
a sense of fondness is being revived. Being summoned to once again explore the
island’s stunning landscape, is like being given a second chance to create new
set of memories in a place that always remind me of splendid memory
reels from four years ago.
Postcard-Image Cibang Cove
After a brief ceremony
inaugurating the small airport of Calayan Island, we hit the explore button
immediately and boarded a speedboat. Sailing over cerulean-colored waters had me
jolting back into a spell of enthrallment. For the second time, I found myself
embracing the island’s grand scheme of charms.
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| Photo courtesy of Sir Noel Amata |
It didn’t took long before
I gazed at the direction of a drawn-out cove known as Cibang. The same place where four years ago I was almost swept away
to the sea by its mighty waves. Beyond that near brush with drowning, it was
also the same place I told myself as the most beautiful length of oceanfront
I’ve ever seen in my entire life.
Knowing full well that
memories have a way of exaggerating, I stared at Cibang Cove’s white sandy
shoreline as it sparkles like jewelries, against the gleam of the sun.
Mesmerizing still. I directed my gaze at the forest that fills the surrounded
serrated peaks before turning my attention to the lunar-like rock formations jutting
out to the volatile ocean. “Yep, this is
the Cibang Cove I remember”. Raw, desolate and tempestuously absorbing.
As our speedboat capers to the
motions of the heavy rollicking of the waves, we each struggled transferring to
a small buoyant device that took us to the shore. Finally out of the boat and
with my feet planted at the soft fine sands of Cibang Cove, I took off my
shoes and walk barefooted.
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| Because our boat can't come close to the shore, we have to ride this. Photo courtesy of Sir Noel Amata |
Sinking my feet and
feeling the scorching sands at every step, I tuned in at the sounds of the
battering waves as it collides with the coastline. The blending of the colors
all around me: white sands below me, indigo waters behind me, emerald forest
covered crests on my other side and the blue skies above me, all constitutes a
sense that I was inside a postcard image. The lure of taking a dip at the
crystal-clear waters was strong. But my craving for big lobsters and curacha crabs was mightier. So I headed
straight to other end of Cibang Cove and into a waiting feast.
Fascination Redux at Calayan
After our late lunch
shared boodle-fight style, we rested
a bit before proceeding to Nagudungan Hill. The short and breezy hike atop this
rolling mound overlooking sequences of beguiling scenery of deep ravines, the
Philippine Sea and the Pacific Ocean on both sides and Cibang Cove below,
brings back the same captivation Calayan left on me during my first trip
here.
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| Lobsters and curcacha crabs are a common food on the island |
This time around as I
separated myself from our group, I lumbered to the different highpoints of
Nagudungan’s and immersed myself at the exceptional set of bounteous beautiful
nature around me.
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| That's me jumping for joy at the beautiful scenery atop Nagudungan Hill |
While listening to myself
think, I saw one of the ladies from the Tourism Promotions Board of the Philippines
wandering on her own nearby. I first noticed her during our plane ride to
Calayan Island and figured her to be a snob. Here on top of Nagudungan Hill though,
she was all jovial and doing all gamely poses. “Sir Marky, it’s so beautiful here” as Genesis initiates a small talk.
Not long after we were indulged in a conversation centering on the beauty of
the island and how rejuvenating to leave all worldly worries behind.
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| View of Cibang Cove from Nagudungan Hill |
Later as the sun starts to
set, we joined the others seated over a patch of grass sharing a bottle of a
locally made wild berry wine. Together we watched the sunset slowly sinks into
the horizon.
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| Genesis is game 24/7 for some editorial type photo |
As the sky became an image of a scattered Roman candle explosion,
I laid on the grass for a few minutes more. Delighted at experiencing the
untouched splendor of the island once again, I turn the pages of my first
Calayan Island experience into a new chapter: Fascination Redux. And “this is only day one” I told myself.
Unending Quests
The next day I awoke to a
morning sky equal parts blue and a medley of streaks of red and blooming
yellows. The rising sun partly hidden by the sun and the waves of the sea
kissing the pebble-filled beach with abandon. I took a short walk along the
beachfront eager to continue our exploration of the island. A couple of dogs snooped
at the sands as they followed me. The icy daybreak wind then hushed me to sit
on a rock and just stare at the endless swirling of the ocean’s whitecaps.
After breakfast we divided
ourselves into three groups and boarded a smaller boat and cruised over the
seas on a maritime convoy. Our first stop was Lusok Cave ('Lusok' is an Ilocano word for 'hole'), where a natural pool
is hidden behind a twin-passageways beneath a mammoth craggy-rock wall.
Inside, we took turns
diving into the refreshing indigo waters—a mixture of the sea and the fresh
water dripping from the walls of the cave.
Caanawan falls is located
a few kilometers upland and necessitates riding a powerful habal-habal (motorycyle) to
get into the jump-off point. From there, another 10 minute hike takes you to
the waterfalls.
It was almost nighttime
when we got back to Apollo Resort in Dadao Beach—where we’re billeted. Weary
from back-to-back days of exploration and still high from the euphoric
inauguration of Calayan Island Airport, we spent the night further bonding together.
All wholeheartedly supportive of the TPB and the Calayan LGU’s plan to maintain
the rawness of the island—despite the new developments, we all feel the
excitement at the prospering of sustainable and responsible tourism practices
in the island in the coming months. My return trip to Calayan Island was more than the 'second time is a charm' cliche, it is also an eye-opener to the importance of preserving the island against wrong forms of development. As Mayor Al Llopis told us "We won't let investors use Calayan Island as their playground", I am assured that the island is in good hands for now.
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| Photo courtesy of Sir Noel Amata |
Special thanks to Wakay Tours for arranging all our tours, accommodations and transportation in Calayan Island. If you have any questions regarding where to stay or What to do in Calayan Island, feel free to send them your inquiries.
